Stomach bloating

[LES Jake]

Greetings from NYC:

I want to learn all the options there are for why my stomach is so damn bloated. I visit my doctor tomorrow and want to work this issue out. Here's what the options I know of as of today:

1. the meds I'm taking
2. Dairy
3. Clostrum difficile

I know there are more, right now I can't think of them. Any ideas out there? Nutrition? No sugar (damn!)?

Thanks so much for you help.

Lower East Side Jake

[penguin]

hi jake, on the lower east side.

difficult to say, really, could be any number of things. how long has this been going on for? is there a specific pattern to it, ie does it get worse after taking meds/eating certain foods/when you are stressed etc etc?

what meds are you taking? lots of them are renowned for causing GI upsets, be it diarrhea, cramps, bloating... other things your doctor might want to explore - IBS, IBD, colitis of some sort, GI candida, something parasitic or bacterial...your doctor is really the only one who can give you any definite answers, and probably only after running assorted tests.

natural options to help, whatever the cause...pro and pre biotics, which you can get from live yogurt etc (although for best effect take capsules); peppermint, either in capsules (over here goes by the name of Colpermin?) or tea..fennel, maybe. might help too. Diet -wise:  avoid food that is high in fat, insoluble fiber, caffeine, coffee (even decaf), fizziness or alcohol. LIfestyle - relax, destress...like yoga or meditation or whatever you find soothing.

hope it is soon better..
Kate

[LES Jake]

Thank you for the input. I know there's a list of possible reasons and am now going to take the necessary tests to start to check off what it is and what it isn't.

Again, thank you.
Jake

[jordan]

Hi Jake:

check out my post:
http://forums.poz.com/index.php?topic=1950.msg24401#new

[Brian360]

Jake,

I hear ya man, I'm experiencing the same thing right now and although it seems that it's only half as bad right now, I'm also eating half of what I was. 

I love good food and snacks and snacking seems the only way to fullfill my daily intake.

Brian

[sfpvguy41]

interestng to see this post - since today was a celebratory day!  I had my first firm shit in months!  Funny, huh, how these things can really make you happy 

I've had these exact same problems (gas, bloating, loose stools) for so long it's almost normal now.  I can treat it symptomatically, but want to know why i have the problems!

My PA, who has been dealing with these issues for 15 years, told me to try Florastor, which is apparently popular in Europe and routinely prescribed for a 5 day course after taking antibiotics.  It is is a probiotic.  I got it at Walgreen's, but they had to special order it.  It isn't cheap, but my god, after starting to take 2x day, along with religiously taking a pill for lactose intolerance each day (I took something called Digestive Advantage II also sold at Walgreen's) and things have been getting firmer and firmer each day, and today was like a f*cking miracle!   

I was planning to take a stool test over 3 days, he wanted to check for some bacteria that are common among gay people, but I'm sticking with this for another week or so.  If it really continues to work, i'm going to see if i can cut back on either pill or if i need to keep taking it.  Oh, did I mention I'm passing gas a LOT less than before, much to the relief of my boyfriend.

By way of background I've been on Reyataz/Norvir, Viread and Epivir since March. One reason I started on meds (a little early, by the t-cell count) was because I was really fed up with the stomach issues.  They got a little better on the meds, but not totally. 

There was a recent article in the press about how HIV hides in the gut.  I think the damage it does us there, before meds, during meds and as a result of the antibiotics we invariably take, it something that needs a lot more research.  Esp since so many of us have problems with digestion. 

Good luck!

[MitchMiller]

I'm just the opposite... shit as hard as a rock and barely anything comes out until I feel like I'm literallly carrying a heavy load!  The dam breaks about once every four days and sometimes so much comes out it dams up the toilet at work!   I think part of my problem is that I take Glutamine.  For those of you with the runs... you might try powdered Glutamine.  Give it about two weeks of daily use and it may begin to have an effect.

[alterman]

I'm just the opposite... shit as hard as a rock and barely anything comes out until I feel like I'm literallly carrying a heavy load!  The dam breaks about once every four days and sometimes so much comes out it dams up the toilet at work!   I think part of my problem is that I take Glutamine.  For those of you with the runs... you might try powdered Glutamine.  Give it about two weeks of daily use and it may begin to have an effect.

My  stule is the same way hard as a rockand it comes out round like a ball and sometimes I know I have more than whats coming out because its like a little drop in the can.but lately I been taking a enima and it relieve's me.

[Broken_Angel]

 :-\You may have an overobundance of yeast in your system (men can too).  Try getting Acidopholis from a health food store. They do make in a non-refrigerated pill form now, Yeah! A woman who does Hi Colonics explained it to me...  If you have too much yeast in your system it will also be in your intestine.  And what does heat and agitation do with yeast...it expands.   Anyway, makes sense and is worth trying.

I take one a day just to keep it managable and pill load down.  It has reduced my bloating almost in half.  Unfortunately, with this illness nothing is absolute.  Hope it helps

[LES Jake]

Thanks. I see the doctor tomorrow and am ready with alot of questions and hopefully will come away with a direction to go in. I want  to thank all of you for helping me out, tremendously.

Jake